Re: [help-texinfo] Dividing a texinfo document into parts?

[Karl Berry]

Hi Brooks,

    I'm working on a 150-page texinfo manual, 

Cool.  What's it for?

    don't see anything obvious in the manual.

Yeah, because something like @part has never been implemented :(.  (Been
on the TODO list I-don't-know-how-many-years.)

Adding another sectioning level, one that is optional, to makeinfo
sounds like a pain.  My suggestion for info would be to write it out
manually in the top-level menu (other manuals do this, e.g., Emacs).

@menu
* Intro::

Part I: foo
* chap1::
...

Part II: bar
* chap5
@end menu


Implementing @part for TeX doesn't sound too hard, really.  But barring
figuring out all the details now, I think you can manage an equivalent
doing something like this (totally untested, and I'm sure I've got stuff
wrong):

@tex
{\chapfonts
Part I:@*
This is my first part
}
\writetocentry{part}{This is my first part}{I}
\page
@end tex

And, at the beginning:
@tex
\gdef\dopartentry#1#2#3#4{%
  \tocentry{Part #3: #1}{#4}
}
@end tex


Now, if it's not totally urgent and we want to figure out what the best
specification is, I'm open to that discussion.  I kind of imagine
something like @titlepage:

@partpage
@parttitle This is my first part
... whatever else, regular Texinfo text ...
@end partpage

It would be ignored by makeinfo, as titlepage is.

Wdyt?


Best,
karl